Multi-magnet magnetic toy

ABSTRACT

A plurality of miniature permanent bar magnets, each of which has a nonmagnetic sleeve generally centrally positioned thereon, may be removably joined together at opposite poles to form a multi-segment sculpture, doodle, or other art form or structure. The resultant art form or structure may be supported on a ferromagnetic metal plate fixedly mounted on a nonmagnetic base.

a v United States Patent 11 1 3,706,158

Jensen 1 Dec. 19, 1972 [54] MULTI-MAGNET MAGNETIC TOY 3,196,579 7/1965 Lepper ..46/25 [72] Inventor: David R. Jensen, Mountain View,

Calm Primary Examiner-Louis G. Mancene Assistant Examiner-Robert F. Cutting [73] Ass1gnee: J/D Scientific, Palo Alto, Calif. d L Griffin [22] Filed: April 29, 1971. 57 BST A RACT [2]] Appl. No.: 138,496 1 A plurality of miniature permanent bar magnets, each of which has a nonmagnetic sleeve generally centrally g ts-8L"... 46/236, 7 positioned n y be removably joined g h d at opposite poles to'form a multi-segment sculpture, I o are doodle, or other art form or structure. The resultant art form or structure may be supported on a ferromag- [56] References Cited netic metal plate fixedly mounted on a nonmagnetic UNITED STATES PATENTS base 1,535,035 10 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures 4/1925 Philipp ..'.....46/24l PATENTED E 19 I972 3. 706. 158

sum 1 BF 2 i we 3 INVENTOR. J DAVID R. JENSEN BY @MQW ATTORNEY PATENTED E Y 3.706.158

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DAVID R. JENSEN T 5 Mm/19. 2

ATTORNEY MUlLTl-MAGNET MAGNETIC TOY BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to multi-magnet magnetic toys for use in forming multi-segment sculptures, doodles, or other art forms or structures.

A plurality of miniature permanent bar magnets may be removably joined together at opposite poles to form a multi-segment art form or structure. However, they have a tendency to clump together in side-by-side abutment since the preferential position of two bar magnets is side-by-side. This tendency is very undesirable as it makes the bar magnets more difficult to work with and substantially precludes them from being continuously arranged into free form sculptures or other such art forms. Moreover, clumping of the magnets together in side-by-side abutment is not aesthetically pleasing and not very useful in constructing art forms or other structures. Once it occurs the magnets generally have to be separated and the construction of a desired art form or structure begun again. When the magnets are clumped together in side-by-side abutment their magnetic field forms a closed circuit primarily maintained within the clumped magnets themselves. Clumping of the magnets therefore also makes the magnets weaker and less attractive to other magnets or magnetic material.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A general object of this invention is to provide an improved and more versatile multi-magnet magnetic toy for use in forming multi-segment sculptures, doodles, or other art forms or structures.

A more specific Object of this invention is to provide an improved multi-magnet magnetic toy of this type in which the magnets are prevented from clumping together in side-by-side abutment and are maintained in a position ready for continuous arrangement into free art forms.

Another more specific object of this invention is to provide an improved multi-magnet magnetic toy of this type in which permanent bar magnets are prevented from clumping together in side-by-side abutment and the resultant strength of the magnetic field of the bar magnets is thereby substantially increased at the poles thereof.

Still another more specific Object of this invention is to provide an improved multi-magnet magnetic toy of this type in which a pair of permanent bar magnets may be joined at opposite poles thereof and held at an acute angle with respect to one another.

These and other objects of this invention, which will become apparent from a reading of this specification and an inspection of the accompanying drawings, are accomplished according to the preferred embodiment of this invention by employing a plurality of miniature permanent bar magnets and by mounting a nonmagnetic sleeve on a central portion of each of these bar magnets. The sleeves are proportioned so that a pair of bar magnets may be joined at one end and held at an acute angle with respect to one another by abutment of the nonmagnetic sleeves mounted thereon upon one another.

DESCRlPTlON OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a pair of permanent bar magnets employed in a multi-magnet magnetic toy according to the preferred embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a multi-segment free art form constructed with a multi-magnet magnetic toy according to the preferred embodiment of this invention.

FIGS. 3-5 are front elevational views illustrating multi-segment sculptures constructed with a multimagnetmagnetic toy according to the preferred embodiment Of this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawings, there is shown a multi-magnet magnetic toy 10 for use in forming multisegment sculptures, doodles, or other art forms or structures. In accordance with the preferred embodiment of this invention, this multi-magnet magnetic toy comprises a plurality (preferably ten or more) of similar miniature permanent bar magnets 12. Each bar magnet 12 may be, for example, about seven-eighths of an inch in length, about three-sixteenths of an inch in width, and about one-eighth of an inch in height. Bar magnets 12 may comprise for example, P/N CB 307 magnets sold by Permag Pacific Corporation of 5441 West 104th Street, Los Angeles,-California.

As indicated in FIG. 1, each bar magnet 12 has a north pole N and a south pole S. A tightly fitting nonmagnetic sleeve 14 is mounted on a central portion of each bar magnet 12 between its north and south poles N and S and is held in place by frictional engagement with the central portion of the bar magnet on which it is mounted. Nonmagnetic sleeves 14 may also be mounted on the central portions of bar magnets 12 by gluing them in place thereon. They are proportioned so that end portions of the bar magnets are exposed and so that a pair of bar magnets may be joined at opposite poles thereof and held at an acute angle with respect to one another by abutment of the nonmagnetic sleeves mounted thereon upon one another, as variously shown in FIGS. 1-5. Each nonmagnetic sleeve 14 may comprise, for example, a vinyl tube having an inside diameter of about three-sixteenths of an inch, an outside diameter of about five-sixteenths of an inch, and a length of about one-half inch. Such vinyl nonmagnetic sleeves may be formed, for example, from industrial grade Vicon tubing sold by Port Plastics Inc. of Constitution Drive, Menlo Park, California and may be transparent or colored the same or different colors (for example, black, blue, maroon, etc.) to produce different effects. Nonmagnetic sleeves 14 may also be made of aluminum, epoxy, rubber, or some other nonmagnetic material.

Providing bar magnets 12 with nonmagnetic sleeves 14 in this manner, prevents the bar magnets from clumping together in side-by-side abutment and causes the magnetic fields of the bar magnets to extend away from the bar magnets. This impedes the formation of closed magnetic circuits and makes the bar magnets 12 more attractive to one another and to other magnetic material. For example, the strength of the magnetic field of a pair of bar magnetsl2 joined as shown in FIG. 1 is increased by about one-hundred and five percent at the free ends of the bar magnets and by about eightyfive percent at the joined ends of the bar magnets.

Sleeve-bearing bar magnets 12 may be joined end for end and continuously arranged in a few seconds time into a free form sculpture'such as that shown in FIG. 2. Even when left in complete disarray, sleeve-bearing bar magnets 12 appear as a free form sculpture. Alterna-- tively, sleeve-bearing barmagnets 12 may be joined together one at a time to build up a desired sculpture such as a column, pagoda, skyscraper, box, or any of an almost unlimited variety of other sculptures-or structures such as those shown in FIGS. 3-5. These sculptures and structures may be formed on a ferromagnetic metal (for example, iron or steel) plate 16 fixedly mounted on a nonmagnetic (for example, wood or marble) base 18. They may be quickly disassembled and reworked to form other sculptures .or structures, or they may be made permanent by placing a small amount of glue on each joint to cement the magnets in place.

I claim:

1. A magnetic toy comprising a plurality of permanent magnets, each of said permanent magnets having a north pole, a south pole, and a nonmagnetic sleeve mounted thereon between these north and south poles, each such non-magnetic sleeve being shorter in length than the permanent magnet on which it is mounted and having a thickness such that the combined cross-sectional area of the nonmagnetic sleeve and the permanent magnet on which it is mounted is greater than the cross-sectional area of the permanent magnet alone.

2. A magnetic toy as in claim 1 wherein said plurality of permanent magnets comprises at least ten similar permanent magnets that may be joined together to form a multi-segment structure. Y

3. A magnetic toy as in claim 2 further comprising a ferromagnetic plate fixedly mounted on a nonmagnetic base to support a structure formedby joining the permanent magnets together.

4. A magnetic toy as in claim 1 wherein each of said permanent magnets comprises a permanent bar magnet.

5. A magnetic toy as in claim 4 wherein each such nonmagnetic sleeve is proportioned so that end portions of the permanent bar magnet on which it is mounted are exposed and so that a pair of permanent bar magnets may be joined at one end thereof and held at an acute anglevwith respect to one another by abutment of the sleevesmoun-ted thereon upon one another.

6. A magnetic toy as in claim 5 wherein said plurality of permanent bar magnets comprises at least similar permanent bar magnets that may be joined together to tional en a e ent therewith.

9. A m ag ne iic toy as in claim 7 wherein the nonmagnetic sleeve mounted on each of said permanent bar magnets is bonded thereto.

10. A magnetic toy as in claim 7 wherein said plurality of permanent bar magnets comprises at least twenty similar permanent bar magnets that may be joined together to form a multi-segment structure. 

1. A magnetic toy comprising a plurality of permanent magnets, each of said permanent magnets having a north pole, a south pole, and a nonmagnetic sleeve mounted thereon between these north and south poles, each such non-magnetic sleeve being shorter in length than the permanent magnet on which it is mounted and having a thickness such that the combined cross-sectional area of the nonmagnetic sleeve and the permanent magnet on which it is mounted is greater than the cross-sectional area of the permanent magnet alone.
 2. A magnetic toy as in claim 1 wherein said plurality of permanent magnets comprises at least ten similar permanent magnets that may be joined together to form a multi-segment structure.
 3. A magnetic toy as in claim 2 further comprising a ferromagnetic plate fixedly mounted on a nonmagnetic base to support a structure formed by joining the permanent magnets together.
 4. A magnetic toy as in claim 1 wherein each of said permanent magnets comprises a permanent bar magnet.
 5. A magnetic toy as in claim 4 wherein each such nonmagnetic sleeve is proportioned so that end portions of the permanent bar magnet on which it is mounted are exposed and so that a pair of permanent bar magnets may be joined at one end thereof and held at an acute angle with respect to one another by abutment of the sleeves mounted thereon upon one another.
 6. A magnetic toy as in claim 5 wherein said plurality of permanent bar magnets comprises at least 10 similar permanent bar magnets that may be joined together to form a multi-segment structure.
 7. A magnetic toy as in claim 6 further comprising a ferromagnetic plate fixedly mounted on a nonmagnetic base to support a multi-segment structure formed by joining the permanent bar magnets together.
 8. A magnetic toy as in claim 7 wherein the nonmagnetic sleeve mounted on each of said permanent bar magnets comprises a plastic tube held in place on a central portion of the permanent bar magnet by frictional engagement therewith.
 9. A magnetic toy as in claim 7 wherein the nonmagnetic sleeve mounted on each of said permanent bar magnets is bonded thereto.
 10. A magnetic toy as in claim 7 wherein said plurality of permanent bar magnets comprises at least twenty similar permanent bar magnets that may be joined together to form a multi-segment structure. 